A Biblical Approach to Parenting Your AthleteSýnishorn

Raising Kingdom Minded Kids (Thy Will, Not My Will)

READY:

Start a youth out on his way; even when he grows old, he will not depart from it. –Proverbs 22:6

SET: Training for which Kingdom?

Occasionally I’ll hear a father say something like, “I’m not going to interfere with my child’s faith journey; I’m going to let them figure that out on their own.” Can you imagine a parent saying, “I’m not going to interfere with my toddler playing near the street. They can figure that out on their own.”? Parents are responsible for setting their children on healthy and fruit-bearing paths, especially for their spiritual well-being. So how do parents place their children on healthy life pathways? Your child’s sports environments are life laboratories for exploring both healthy and unhealthy paths.

A Bible teacher once said, “more is caught than taught.” In the parenting context, that means that children observe what their parents model more than they listen to their verbal instructions. Ask yourself, “What am I modeling to my child?;” “What are they learning by observing my life?;” “How does what I say line up with what I do?;” If you model loving and serving God, then most likely your child will also.

Another parental teaching principle is “you can’t pass on what you don’t possess.” That means if the parent does not practice a healthy faith life, then they will not be able to model it properly before their child. How would you evaluate your own faith life? Is it something worthy of modeling before your child?

Consider this, your child’s sports environments can be used as a stage to express your love for God and people. This transformation brought on by engagement with God becomes a testimony to those around us. Many opportunities for testimonies occur during sports competitions. The more aware you are, the more ready you will be to respond in a manner worthy of one who purports to be a Christ follower.

Ask God to help you lead your athlete child down paths of righteousness for His sake.

WORKOUT: Bible Discussion

Colossians 3:21

1 Timothy 4:7-8

Ephesians 6:4

GO:

1. 1 Timothy 4:7-8 makes a distinction between “training the body” and “training in godliness.” Write down a few examples of “training in godliness.”

2. Colossians 3:21 and Ephesians 6:4 apply to both fathers and mothers. Give some examples of parents exasperating their children to the point of discouragement.

3. What is your main takeaway from this lesson?

OVERTIME: Practice Session

1. Initiate a conversation with your athlete child. Ask them to identify several ways they train their body for their sports. Then make the connection how they might train “in godliness.”

2. Do you (or your spouse) know anyone who models the Christian life in an attractive and winsome way? Would you consider having a conversation with that person, asking them how they seem to make living for Christ a most worthy cause?

Thy Will, Not My Will Testimonial.

Was this Plan helpful? We adapted this Plan from The Biblical Approach to Parenting Your Athlete study. Access the full study here .